Christmas Cooking - Part One: Savoury

I live a very privileged life. Christmas to me has always been, on some level, about abundance - about the pile of gifts waiting tantalisingly beneath the tree, about an extra effort to spend time with family, and about eating too much for at least two days straight. There are other aspects of course, like the joy of giving, of community outreach, goodwill to men and so on (though, ironically, it's also the season that can make it most difficult to feel goodwill towards anyone!), but it's the abundance that comes with recipe reviews so that's the one I'm writing about.

How to Knit: Wrap-and-Turn Short Rows

When it comes to putting curves into knitting, nothing beats the noble short row - and it's not as complicated as it looks, I promise. Short rows can help add a bend into an otherwise straight rectangular shawl, and let you turn corners with ease when knitting sock toes and heels.

Short rows make this piece into a trapezoid - long bottom, short top and inward-sloping sides.

Want to knit "wrap-and-turn" short rows? Of course you do. Let's learn how!

O Christmas Tree

NOW it feels like Christmas is on its way - it didn't when we put the lights up in the yard or draped the house with tinsel or made snowflake-shaped gingerbread. But now that the tree is up I can feel it. Christmas is close!